How to Write a Great Creative Brief

A great creative brief is the foundation of a successful video production. It helps align your vision with the production team’s execution — saving time, reducing costs, and minimising confusion. Whether you’re a marketing manager, brand head, or entrepreneur, writing a clear, concise creative brief ensures that your project hits the mark.
At Recode Media, we’ve seen firsthand how a well-written brief leads to smoother projects, stronger creative, and better business results. Here’s how to write one.

1. Start with the Objective
What do you want this video to achieve? Be specific...

• Brand awareness?
• Lead generation?
• Internal training?
• Launching a new product?

Clarifying the goal helps shape the format, style, and structure of your video. Define how success will be measured — views, conversions, sentiment, or reach.

2. Define the Target Audience
Who are you speaking to?
Include as much detail as possible including age range, occupation, interests, pain points, values.
Knowing your audience allows the creative team to tailor the message, tone, and visuals effectively.

3. Clarify the Key Message
What’s the one thing you want your viewer to walk away with?
Stick to a single-minded proposition — something emotionally resonant and intellectually clear. Simplicity wins here. You can always layer in supporting messages.

4. Provide the Context
Where will this video live? On social? On TV? In a pitch deck?
Each platform has unique requirements and behaviours.
Knowing where your video will be seen influences script, length, and style.

5. Share Brand Guidelines
Help the production team stay true to your brand. This reduces revisions and ensures your video feels like an extension of your brand.
Include:

• Brand colors
• Logos (and usage rules)
• Fonts
• Do’s and Don’ts
• Tone of voice

6. Set Your Timeline & Budget
Be realistic about your timeline — and open about your budget.
Even a rough range helps the team propose solutions that fit your scope. If you’re tight on either, a creative workaround is usually possible — but only if expectations are aligned early.

7. Include References or Inspiration
Show, don’t just tell.
Share links to 2–3 videos you love — and why. This gives your production partner a visual anchor and creative alignment before the cameras roll.

To make things even easier, we’ve created a plug-and-play Creative Brief Template. It’s what we use with our own clients to kick off smooth, creative, and impactful productions. You'll find it at the end of this blog post ;-)
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Ready to Start Your Next Production?
At Recode Media, we don’t just execute — we collaborate.
Let’s take your story from concept to screen with precision, passion, and purpose.
Get in touch to book your strategy session!

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